Back To September
by Kretari - daughter of Hermes
Summary: Remus couldn't believe the nerve of the Dursleys, hurting his godson. Of course, there wasn't much he could do other than try to make Harry's life better than it had been. But..without help, that would be very highly unlikely to happen, and even then, it would be a challenge, one he was willing to take on. Rated for future chapters, just in case.
1. Chapter 1

**AN: So...here's the deal...I've been busy, I know I should've updated a while back on my other stories. But I'm finally getting some relaxation time. Meaning? Writing time. By the way, happy late Christmas, guys. We officially made it through the holiday. Now to make it through New Years, right?**

**Now. This story, I know I haven't written anything in this fandom in...a long while. I haven't worked on the others on this account in a while.. My old account, there were several that are beyond my help. They're horrid in my opinion, now looking back at them. But this is a new story for the Harry Potter series, obviously. I'm getting back around to all these old fandoms I used to be in.**

**This is by no means an original idea, but...I figured it was worth a shot, since I adore these stories.**

**Enjoy.**

The sun was high in the sky, and Remus Lupin could be found venturing up Privet Drive to check on his godson. It was the first time he'd managed to do so since Harry was placed with the Dursleys and he got the distinct feeling that wasn't good.

The sight he was greeted by was a small child answering the door, looking no older than the age of four. That couldn't be right though, because as far as he knew the Dursleys only had Dudley, and Harry, and both of them should be at least six.

It didn't take long for Petunia to come to the door. She scowled, but allowed Remus to enter. That was when he got his answer. The small child was Harry, his godson.

It stung, the fact that he was so...small. He got the feeling that the child hadn't been treated correctly, so he figured it could only help to get him away from the home, damn Dumbledore and his plans. He wasn't letting his godson suffer.

As such, Remus pulled some strings with Petunia and was able to take Harry with him that evening. The first place he went to was Spinner's End, to the Snape residence. He knocked rapidly, clutching the small child.

When the door opened to reveal Severus, the potions master looked less than amused. "Lupin. What a nice surprise,"he mumbled, but there was a warmth in his tone that he didn't get with anyone else.

"Severus, please, some help would be lovely."Remus said rapidly, alerting Severus to the fact that there was something else going on. He stepped aside, letting the werewolf inside.

As he passed, Severus caught sight of the child. He sighed. "Who's child is that?"

Remus gave a faint smile. "This is Harry, Severus."

That was all that had to be said for Severus to stop and take a closer look at Lily's child that Remus had with him.

"Where's he been?"  
"With Petunia,"Remus answered.  
Severus sighed. "Of course,"he grumbled.

The next week or so, Remus stayed with Severus, the both of them working to get Harry healthy again.

Harry got used to them being around after a day or so, and didn't fuss so much about them being near him. But it still worried the two adults.

Come September, Severus would be back at Hogwarts, and Remus would have nowhere to go, no one to turn to for help with Harry, particularly around the full moon.

Severus knew this and disappeared for about an hour one evening once Remus and Harry were fast asleep, exhausted from the games earlier in the day. He had to get some sort of clearance, because he knew how much this meant to not only Remus, but to himself as well. He would never admit it aloud, but he cared for Harry, he was only a child, had done nothing to deserve his hatred.

There was a lot of discussion in the space of an hour, and he returned just as Remus woke up. "Severus?"he asked softly as he shifted. "Where'd you run off to?"

"Had to speak with the bumbling old coot about something. You and Harry are to come stay with me at Hogwarts during the school term."Severus answered. "I may have pulled a few strings."

Remus gave a soft smile in response. "Thank you,"he said.

Still, things settled more after that, since they all knew where they would be come September. It only worried Remus that Harry seemed..reclusive, almost. He shied away from anyone he didn't know. That could prove to be an issue at Hogwarts. It was such a shocking change from the social child that Harry had been before James and Lily died that it had caught both Remus and Severus off guard.

Of course, it pushed both Remus and Severus into looking into how the child had been treated at the Dursley's, not that it was hard to do.

Severus left to have a word with the family once they figured out about half of it just from the state of the child in their care. Remus focused on making sure that his godson, his cub, was okay.

**So..yeah. Here. I figure this should be a decent start for me. So long as I can figure out where I'm going with this, everything should be fine.**


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: Here's the deal. I will most definitely be writing on this more, as well as the others I'm working on. With that said, updates on EVERYTHING will be slow for a while as I am doing a lot before going back to school, last minute stuff for a final in chorus. I have two songs to learn by heart, both by Black Veil Brides, which is an amazing band. But, anyways, hopefully, I'll have plenty of time to write.**

**Also, by the way, guys, I'm writing this and a chapter update for Here's To Never Growing Up, one of my PJO stories, while recovering from an awesome day out with a couple friends yesterday. We went to see Catching Fire, then came back and rewatched the Lightning Thief, we're to watch Sea of Monsters today, I believe. Should be fun, right? But we spent a lot of time at a restaurant after Catching Fire just talking. Comparisons, you know? But it was amazing! All of us are Harry Potter fans, and PJO and Hunger Games fans. As far as Hogwarts houes go, we're all split. PJO, godly parents, as we figured out today, are also different. Fun.**

**Enjoy.**

By the time that they had all settled in at Hogwarts before the students arrived, Remus and Severus took time to get Harry used to them, as well as to learn more about the small child. It was surprisingly hard to get him to open up and trust them, but afterwards, they found it was well worth the effort, since Harry was quite a help around the castle with small things. And Severus found the child to be brilliant when it came to potions, scarily so.

When the students arrived, Remus and Harry were seated with Severus at the Head Table, causing people to whisper as they entered and took their seats at their respective tables.

Harry hid slightly, making both men frown at the child in concern. After a while, Severus gave Remus a look and picked Harry up carefully, murmuring something softly to the boy to calm him before setting him in his own chair again.

It gained raised eyebrows from the other professors near them.

Nobody made a comment, however, as the first years came in then to be sorted.

The sorting itself wasn't all that surprising, but Severus never thought it was, never had reason to care one way or the other that night. The feast, however, _was_ surprising, if only due to Harry's surprise at all the food in front of him.

Remus gave an amused smile to his cub, his godson, before giving Severus a knowing look.

The Potions professor only gave a shake of the head in return.

Remus was completely calm as he made sure Harry got some food into his system, at least until Harry started shaking, out of fear if anything, since it wasn't cold in the room. It caused the werewolf's guard to go up. He wasn't sure what had caused it, even after casting a wary look around. Maybe it was just a memory being triggered, but either way, it wasn't shaping up to be good.

Severus had noticed as well and sighed, giving Remus a questioning look. His mask had been dropped over the past several days, now wishing to scare the child that had been damaged enough by his relatives.

Remus, however, wasn't faring well with getting Harry to calm down. After a while, the werewolf got up and gathered Harry in his arms, quietly leaving to get the boy to calm down.

Everyone got to talking when they didn't return.

Severus knew they'd returned to their quarters, and he'd be sure to check up later, but didn't allow himself time to worry.

That night was probably the most eventful first day at Hogwarts, not only for the students, but for Severus and Remus as well. It took a while for Harry to get to sleep, and when he did, Remus finally settled.

Severus frowned slightly as he watched from the doorway. He understood why Remus was so worked up over it, but it just..it wasn't right that this problem even existed.

Remus glanced back at him and shook his head. "How exactly are we going to manage this year if he can't get through a meal in the Great Hall without panicking?"he asked softly.

Severus looked past him to look at Harry before he spoke. "We'll keep a close eye on him,"he finally decided. "It's all we can really do to help. Just be glad that he's not with his relatives anymore."

"And that you've finally let your mask drop around us."Remus added. "It's helpful, knowing that you actually _do_ have a heart, that you care about him as much as I do."

Severus shook his head. "It's not right, for a child to have to grow up in constant fear. It doesn't matter who it is, I will _always_ try and help in some way. Merlin knows I have plenty of abused kids in my house."

Remus nodded. "You handle it so well, too, from what I can tell about your Slytherins in comparison to the ones who were with us during Hogwarts."

The rest of the night passed calmly, filled with chatter. Harry finally slept through the night without a nightmare, for the first time since Remus had got him from the Dursleys and taken him to Severus for help. It was a mutal hope that he got past what his relatives had done to him, hopefully sooner rather than later.

The following morning, as Remus entered, a bit late, to breakfast, one of the Gryffindor boys approached him out of curiousity.

Remus's guard went up and he held Harry a bit closer to himself, even after he realized who the student was. One of the Weasley boys, but still, Remus wasn't willing to let anyone near Harry this morning, if he didn't already know them.

This seemed to be obvious by his expression, because conversation was kept short and the werewolf was able to get to the Head Table without any further issues, setting Harry in his own chair before taking a seat himself.

Severus gave him an odd look, but didn't comment.

Breakfast was a quiet affair, and Harry seemed pretty okay, unlike at yesterday's feast. Maybe it was just due to all the people showing up overwhelming him the previous night, Remus thought. But he didn't dare hope.

**Here. Now..I have something else to work on.**


End file.
